Evil Movie Review: Horns

Hello again all you Pottermore Members, and happy Friday the 13th! Today I want to bring you a review of a movie starring none other than Daniel Radcliffe, aka Harry Potter. This movie was in the dark fantasy thriller genre, and was one of the first times we Rowling fans got to witness Potter as a muggle. I am sure you were just as curious as I was, just like when Radcliffe starred in that play as a crazy stable boy, right? Come on, admit it, we’re all curious to see whom we think of as The Boy Who Lived move on to a world beyond Hogwarts. Well await no more, continue onward for my spoiler filled review.

Despite the fact that I think most celebrities have a life that is 10x easier than the average joe like you or I, well, not me, as Lilith I have nature and the powers of the Earth at my beck and call, but I digress. I am sure there are lots of trials and tribulations that actors and actresses face every year. One of the fears that I have heard is that of being “type cast”, and after an epic or award-winning performance people will come to only picture you as that character. I mean, both Phoenix and Finnes had to deal with being thought of as epic villains for a long time after there first break out films. And nowadays we have so many epic series, and I mean epic…like movie series with 3-8 installments! Elijah Wood will forever be thought of as Frodo (though I have to comment, even though not as famous his most recent work is quirky and fun). And poor Daniel Radcliffe- after 8 movies and 10 years he will forever be known as Harry Potter, there is no way around it. But now that the franchise is over, Radcliffe has moved on like his companions Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.

Just two years after completion of the last installment of Deathly Hallows, Radcliffe starred in this little known film Horns. And as the opening scene unfolded the first thing that really hit me as odd was his voice: even though his British accent as Potter is subtle, hearing him play an American character sans accent was odd. It just felt, well, wrong. But aside from that I quickly got used to it and was pleased as the movie continued onwards.

Radcliffe plays Ignatious Perrish, a boy gone by Ig, who is in love with his high school sweetheart Merrin who was just raped and murdered in the woods. Naturally with his tendency towards drug and alcohol use, and the recent break up fight that they had witnessed at a diner, Ig is the prime suspect in this tiny town in Washington. His family and friends seem to believe his innocence, though they have some doubts, but poor Ig is constantly barraged by people in town or the media about his role in her death. It’s like the whole town has turned against him and can’t wait until there is enough evidence to arrest him. Even poor Ig has his moments where he wonders if he blacked out and did the deed.

Drowning his sorrows in alcohol one night, Ig is taken home by a childhood friend. But when he wakes up naked in bed next to her the next morning he has a pair of horns protruding from his head. The girl, Glenna, sees them but is unfazed by them, though her behavior is even scarier than her lack of fear of the horns to Ig. She proceeds to confess her inner desires to him, and as poor Ig ends up at the doctor and then in the surgeon’s chair to try to have these horns removed, he realizes they make everyone confess any lies or deep secrets or wishes to him. When people break down in front of him, Ig can read their memories with a simple touch.

Throughout the rest of the movie Ig uses the horns to his advantage, getting more and more people to confess what happened on the night of the murder as well as how they really feel about him. Ig keeps it under control, slowly getting closer to the true killer, though performing some wicked acts of revenge as he can.

One of the saddest parts was when he made his brother consume enough drugs and alcohol to overdose while barraging him with guilt over his behavior and disloyalty. I did feel bad for his brother then, but kind of wished he had taken it out on his parents instead since they confessed to him earlier that they did not love him and wished he would just disappear so he wasn’t their problem anymore.

Eventually Ig discovers that his best friend Lee actually committed the rape and murder of Merrin. It was a horrible act, and Ig had to witness it first hand through his memories. Too shocked for action, Ig just lets Lee attack him, throwing his beaten body in to a car that he set on fire. But the horns give you power, and Ig survives. Eventually Ig is able to exact his revenge, clear his name, and join Merrin in the ever after as he dies in the process.

All and all it was a good film. Not what I was expecting. The makeup and horns that Radcliffe dons are gorgeous. The story is a mixture of a feel-good-revenge crossed with a bit of the epic love story, though focusing on the revenge aspect. And though he has a lot of bad traits, you know Ig is really a good guy, even with his devil horns. The one thing that left me a bit confused at the end was who was this marketed for? It was a little too dark and deep for a teenage love story, but a little too young and awkward for an adult revenge story. The truth be told, the more I thought about it, the movie was probably geared towards Radcliffe fans. I mean, there are so many of us out there that love Harry Potter, and though this is probably the opposite of what he intended in taking this role, it is still going to be a long time before Radcliffe does not automatically equal Harry Potter. But he can certainly use that to his advantage since a lot of people, myself included, will probably watch a lot of his films just out of curiosity as he tries to break away from his role as the famous Harry Potter.

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